From Dutch coach to consortium
A clean sailing sport deserves a clean coach boat. That was the view of Jaap Zielhuis, head coach of the Dutch team when he oversaw the port of Aarhus during the World Sailing Championships in 2018. The Sailing Innovation Center in The Hague subsequently brought
together a number of companies and (knowledge) institutions in a consortium to develop such a clean coach boat. Former Dutch top-sailors Sjoerd Vollebregt, Cees van Bladel and Pieter Lantermans, among others, are involved in this.
After an initial feasibility study by TU Delft students and a team of young professionals of the Economic Development Board Drechtsteden, the consortium has developed a working demonstration model (proof of concept), consisting of a tank with hydrogen, a fuel cell,
a battery and an electric outboard motor with powertrain and this set up has been tested in a sloop. A prototype of the coach boat is undergoing further testing in the port of Den Helder
in a realistic user environment and the company H2 Marine Solutions has been established to bring this coach boat on the market in 2023.
Smaller boats for professional use
H2 Marine Solutions is a company that develops products for sustainable sailing using hydrogen. The focus is on fast sailing, smaller boats for professional use. Besides (top)
sailing coaches think of police, fire brigade, governmental organizations for water related infrastructure, water taxis and other passenger transport, patrol and other port services, defense, coastguard and rescue companies.
H2 Marine Solutions is building and testing a coach boat for sailing sports. The first final version will be launched in the summer of 2023. Next to that H2 Marine Solutions is developing packages (powertrain, hardware, software) for conversion of existing boats:
battery, tank, fuel cell and engine in combination with the right couplings and engine management system. A third activity will be consulting boat builders about the hydrogen technology.Characteristics of the H2 Marine Solutions coach boat
During the Youth World Sailing Championship in Scheveningen, The Hague, Netherlands (10–15 July 2022), H2 Marine Solutions will present a prototype.
During the World Sailing Championships in the same venue in 2023 (10–20 August) a market-ready product will be launched.
The H2 Marine Solutions boat is electrically powered, where the H2 (hydrogen) is used as an extender.
Length overall (LOA) 6.8m
Weight (operational) 1100 kg
Power 50 kW
Capacity battery 40 kWh
Capacity H2 51 kWh
Maximum speed 25 kts
Sailing time 6 hrs
50 minutes at 25 kts
5.30 hrs at 6.5 kts